Though primarily known as a poet in the writing community, Gary Boelhower isn't out of his wheelhouse with children's stories. He has been writing with younger audiences in mind for decades, though it's only as of 2020 that he put any of these stories into a published work.
Boelhower - along with illustrator Sarah Brokke - is nominated for this year's Northeastern Minnesota Book Awards in the category of Children's Literature for the picture book A Common Thirst. "This is a mythical story," says Boelhower. "This is the great story that we live in every day which pits evil against goodness." The story focuses on the goats in the mountains and the sheep in the plains, two creatures that seem quite similar, but manage to cultivate a rift by noticing only how they differ from each other.
Post-publication, Boelhower's efforts with this story are not yet finished. Sharing the simple wisdom provided in this tale remains a mission for the author. "I'm always happy to do readings at libraries and in classrooms... any way in which the book can do the work it's supposed to do in the world."
A Common Thirst is available at The Bookstore at Fitger's, Zenith City Books, and online. More information about the author can be found on his website.
Minnesota Reads is produced at The North 1033 with funding provided in part by the Minnesota Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund.
